Hesitations
by fearblank
Summary: Lily wished this day had never arrived. truly. but all things must come to pass. LPxDM. Sequel to Insecurities.


AN:: So, here it is... the sequel to Insecurities, it has been written. While there's no smexy Draco in it, I enjoyed writing this one... but I'll make up for lack of Draco when I get around to writing the prequel for this one... :)

* * *

"Lily. You really need to get yourself a man." Lily stared at her mother like a deer in the headlights. She had come over to her parent's house from her residence at Hogwarts to borrow one of her dad's books, for a bit of personal research, when she had been roped into lunch and tea with the females of the Weasley family by her mother. Before her mother's blunt statement, she had been chatting amiably with her Aunty Fleur about where she had gotten her dress for the last ministry function.

"What?" Lily felt as though her mother had done this on purpose- dragged her along when she knew she would have an army of females to back her up.

"You heard me fine. A boyfriend. Really now, it's getting ridiculous- do you really want to be alone for the rest of your life? You're already 26 now-."

"Next month." Lily cut in quickly, but knew it was fruitless.

"-Next month, and you haven't had a date in at least three years. And no, your fake no-one's-ever-seen-him boyfriend does _not_ count."

"What about that Nathan person? The one who took me to the Christmas Gala?" Lily could feel the scrutinising gaze of four generations of Weasley females on her, knowing that they were all bursting to get in on her love life- match making was one of their 'specialties'.

"You ditched him within ten minutes." That came from Rose, sitting between her mother and her paternal grandmother, who had started dozing quite a while earlier, on the settee. "I only saw you twice the rest of the night- the second being when you hightailed it for the Floo. And his name was Jonathan." Lily cringed guiltily.

"Now that you mention it," Oh gods. Her mother again. "Where did you go that night? I thought I saw you dancing with someone... didn't see who though. You never dance." Ginny gave her a pointed, accusing look.

"I do too dance! I just... don't like it... that often?" She finished awkwardly. She knew exactly what they were talking about. Draco had conned her into a dance, _one_ dance, for the evening (sneaky, evil, cunning, bastard of a Slytherin that he was). Her mother was right; she didn't dance. Ever. She had inherited her father's lack of skills and, while he braved them to please her mother, Lily continually refused any offer to partner up.

"Oooohhh... I think our little Lily already _has_ a man. Maybe fake guy wasn't so fake after all." Lily glared evilly at Dominique, who just smiled back super sweetly as she tried to calm the fussing toddler on her lap.

"Seems that way." Molly, seventeen without a purpose or direction, commented as she looked up from her mobile phone, to which her eyes had been glued for the majority of the afternoon.

"Come on. Tell. Who is he?" Aunty Ange's eyes glittered with mischief as she egged on the conversation.

Lily shifted uncomfortably in her seat; she wasn't ready for this. Really, she wasn't. Even after three years of sneaking around with Draco, she wasn't ready for her family to find out. Especially not so many at one time either. Draco's family knew(due to the inopportune occasion when Scor and Narcissa had returned from a weeklong holiday in one of the Malfoy's French Villas a day earlier than expected. Scor had found it hilarious that one of his teachers was 'with' his dad, and had payed her out for weeks afterwards. Narcissa had just calmly accepted it and now invited Lily to tea on a weekly basis), but it was easier for them to take than she knew it would be for her own family to.

"Is there some _big_ reason why you don't want to tell us, Lily?" Her Aunt Fleur asked gently from her own seat.

"Um, yeah..." She frowned to herself. Maybe now would be a good time for them to find out; it wasn't as if it was the whole family, and it would save her time, considering every woman sitting around the living room of the Burrow was sure to go home and tell their spouses and partners as soon as possible.

"Is he ugly?" Lily frowned at Lucy.

"No, I'm not _that_ superficial. Plus, he's quite good looking."

"Fat?"

"Bald?"

"Foreign?"

"Old?"

"Slytherin?"

The words had been spat at her in such quick succession, that it had taken a moment for Lily to register them when her family burst into sniggers at the last one. She coughed to herself.

"May I remind you all that I _am_ a Slytherin." Lily told them all with a wry smile on her face. It was Victoire who answered.

"Yes, but no one expects you to get with a Slytherin."

"They were all terrified of you at school." Roxy managed to interject, still giggling to herself- having such a large, opinionated family made it hard for everyone to get their say.

"Yes, well, you're all wrong. He is a Slytherin. And I'm proud of it." She stuck her chin up haughtily.

"Way to go, Lils. First Slytherin boyfriend of the family." Dominique clapped sarcastically (or at least, Lily thought she did. It _is_ very had to pinpoint the tone of a clap.)

"Haha." Lily pulled a face at her strawberry blonde cousin. "It's not because he's Slytherin, it's-."

"He's the son of a Death Eater. Isn't he?" Molly Weasley scrutinised her granddaughter as all eyes flew to look at her. Lily gave her a guilty look.

"Well. Kinda. He is... but not exactly what I think you mean."

"Lily. How could you think that of us?" Her mother's voice was lowered dangerously. "The war is behind us; we won't judge a boy on what his father was like."

"No, you'd judge him on what he's like."

"I don't understand. Why don't you explain it clearly for us all?" Her mother gave her a tight, obviously fake smile and the rest of the room was almost silent as they waited for her explanation, just the few young children, not understanding what was going on in the room, making the usual children's noises.

"I mean..." She paused and swallowed. The moment had come, and it seemed harder than she had ever imagined it would be.

"Yes?" Someone interjected after she had stayed silent for more than an appropriate amount of time.

"I'm dating the son of a Death Eater. Who is... also technically a Death Eater." All of the women in the room blinked in shock, and Lily took the moment of stunned silence her comment had left to continue with what she had to say, before someone tried to cut her off. "And because the last Death Eaters to be initiated were before Voldemort died, that means that yes; I am dating an older man. An older _Slytherin_ man."

"Holy _Merlin_." Aunt Hermione seemed to be the first to recover. "Lily... what are you thinking... ? don't you know all the problems being in a rel-." Lily quickly cut her off.

"Yes. I'm well aware. I'm also perfectly happy with the situation as is, so would appreciate it if you all kept your opinions to yourselves." Quite a few mouths shut against their wills at that point.

"Who?" Her mother was getting paler and paler the longer the silence stretched. "Who is it? Which one?" Ginny's voice was hoarse, her eyes worried. She had already guessed what was coming.

"Draco. Draco Malfoy."

It was at that moment, in which all Hell broke loose.


End file.
